Vancouver Canucks vs. Colorado Avalanche Prediction, NHL Odds
The Colorado Avalanche will be without injured superstar Nathan MacKinnon when they play host to the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday night. The Avalanche have been idle since coming up short on both ends of last week’s home-and-home series with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
There has been virtually no line movement in Thursday night’s matchup at Ball Arena since the Avalanche opened as heavy -211 home favourites, while the Canucks have remained steady at +176. The total has also remained stable at 5.5, with the OVER slightly favoured as a -115 bet.
Canucks vs. Avalanche Nov. 11 NHL Betting Odds
Thursday night’s clash marks the first meeting between these two teams since March 2020. The Avalanche hold a slight edge in head-to-head action, earning the win in four of seven dates with Vancouver. However, it was the Canucks that skated away with a 6-3 victory when they last met, at Vancouver’s Rogers Arena. That marked the Canucks’ most decisive victory over Colorado since 2016, with eight of their past 11 meetings getting settled by just a single goal. There has been no shortage of scoring however, with these clubs combining to score seven or more goals in five of eight outings, and Vancouver earning the win in three of those contests.
Vancouver Canucks
The Canucks will be searching for consistency as they hit the road for just the second time this season. The club posted just two wins over their recent seven-game homestand, and have tallied consecutive wins just once while opening the campaign on a somewhat disappointing 5-6-2 run. Steady offensive production has eluded the Canucks. The club was limited to two or fewer goals on five occasions during their recent homestand.
However, Vancouver’s top producers have shown signs of heating up since the calendar turned to November. JT Miller has padded his team-leading point total with five goals and two assists over his past five outings. Rearguard Quinn Hughes has contributed five helpers over his past two appearances, while Elias Pettersson has stirred from his early-season slumber with two goals and three assists over his past four games.
Colorado Avalanche
The Avalanche saw their early-season woes further complicated by news that Nathan Mackinnon will be sidelined for approximately three weeks after suffering a lower body injury in last Saturday’s 4-2 loss in Columbus. After scoring 35 or more goals in three of the past four seasons, MacKinnon struggled to bury the biscuit early on this season, scoring just once in eight outings. That has contributed to what has been sporadic offensive production from the Avs, who have sputtered to a 4-5-1 start.
The loss of MacKinnon also adds to the club’s injury concerns. Colorado has already seen a number of key players miss time in the early going including rearguard Cale Makar, who has missed four games with an upper body injury, but could return to the lineup on Thursday night.
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